This book is designed for both professional cooks and amateur bakers. Beginning with a manifesto for pastry chefs, this book provides the reader with the knowledge necessary to avoid the common pitfalls of baking by explaining the fundamentals of patisserie, including which ingredients to use, how to line baking tins, understanding fat content, what equipment is needed, oven temperatures, and variables to watch out for. She proceeds to make all the many kinds of patisserie appear effortless by dividing them up into chapters: pastries, breads, tarts and pies, custards, frozen desserts, mousses, steamed puddings, cakes, hot desserts, and petit fours.